your iniquities have feparated between you and your God, and your fins bave hid bis face you. But when it is his pleasure to come among his people, and indulge them with his gracious prefence, even these shall not hinder; he will come leaping on the mountains, skipping on the bills, of all their fins and tranfgreffions, revoltings and backflidings, indolence, negligence, and unbelief. So much for the first instance of God's regard to places where his name is recorded, and the first argument used, to encourage his people to meet and worship him there. I proceed,

Secondly, To confider the other instance and argument made ufe of, the promife of bleffing them; and I will bless thee. God, when he comes unto his people, and pays them a vifit, he does not come empty-handed; he brings a bleffing, or bleffings, along with him. And,

1. His very coming to them, his presence itself, is a blessing; a wish for this, is the fum and fubftance of the bleifing of the high-prieft, pronounced over the children of Israel, and on their account; The Lord bless thee, and keep thee, the Lord make his face to fhine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee; the Lord lift up bis countenance upon thee, and give thee peace". It is the prefence of God, the difplays of his grace and power, the fhine of his face, and the light of his countenance, that fill every petition; and, indeed, a greater bleffing than these cannot be enjoyed. Nothing is more defirable to a gracious foul, than the prefence of God; be he where he will, or come and go where he will; this is what he is importunate for, that it might be with him; as Mofes faid, If thy prefence go not with me, carry us not up bence". It fignifies nothing where fuch a man is, or what he has, if he has not the prefence of God; this is better to him than life, and all the enjoyments of it; whilst others are faying, who will fhew us any good? Any good, any temporal good; any of the good things of this life will fatisfy a worldly mind, but not a gracious heart; fuch will fay, Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us; and, when this favour is granted, and enjoyed, they will add, with praise and thankfulness, thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and wine increased. No temporal mercy can fo delight the heart of a good man, as the prefence of God, and communion with him; his abfence is darkness, and death, his presence is light, and life; it is night when he withdraws himself, and that causes weeping; it is morning when he appears again, and that brings joy; this was the experience of the Pfalmift; for bis anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning'. This might be exemplified in the case of Mary Magdalen, weeping at the fepulchre of Chrift, when her Lord was taken away from her, and the knew not where he was laid; and

of the difciples forrowing, during the time of Chrift's lying there; but, when he was rifen again, and appeared to them, the one, exulting, faid, Rabboni, which is to fay, mafter; "O my dear Mafter, is it thou?" and of the other, it is faid, Then were the difciples glad when they faw the Lord; nothing more defirable, nothing more delightful, than the prefence of God and Chrift; nothing fo much like heaven as this; this perfectly and everlastingly enjoyed, is heaven; In thy prefence is fulness of joy, at thy right hand are pleasures for evermore. Wherefore, it is no wonder that this fhould be the one thing, that fhould be uppermoft on the hearts of God's people, when they are worshipping in his fanctuary; that they may fee his face, behold his beauty, and have a view of his power and his glory; as they have fometimes feen them there with inexpreffible pleasure and fatisfaction: and when they are thus favoured, they are bleffed indeed! This is an antidote againft all fears; they have nothing to be afraid of from all their enemies, men or devils, the rage of the one, or the reproaches of the other; or the fevereft perfecutions; nor indeed, any affliction, trial, or exercife; nay, though they walk through the valley of the shadow of death, fince God is with them; as he is, when they pass even through fire and water; wherefore fince he fays to them, Fear not, I am with thee; be not difmayed, I am thy God; they may say in return, The Lord is my light and my falvation, whom shall I fear? The Lord is the ftrength of my life, of whom fhall I be afraid? And particularly, there is no need to fear any enemy, within or without, whilft worshipping him, fince he is prefent: for, if God be with us, and for us, who fall, or can be against us?

2. The Lord bleffes his people with fresh fupplies of grace: what they have received, though it is much, and very abundant, yet not fufficient; as they are called to fresh duty and service, they want more grace; particularly to affift them in the duties of religion; in acts of public worship; in waiting upon God, and ferving him in his fanctuary: to do this aright they have need to have grace in their hearts, and that in exercife, and a fresh fupply of it; that they may worship him in Spirit and in truth; in righteousness and holiness; acceptably, with reverence and godly fear; and they may expect a fupply of it from him. My God, fays the apostle, shall supply all your need, according to his riches in glory, by Jefus Chrift. The people of God are full of wants: they have many indigencies; they always ftand in need of more grace; and never do they need more than when they are engaged in the public exercifes of religion; to keep their hearts from wandering from God, and intent upon his word; to enable them to receive it in love, and mix it with faith; and in all, to feek the glory of God and they may hope to have it, fince God, their covenant-God and Father,

z John xx. 13, 16, 20. • Ifai. xli. 10.

a Pfalm xvi. 11. Pfalm xxvii. 1.

Pfalm xxvii. 4. and lxiii. 2. Rom. viii. 31. f Phil. iv. 19.

Father, is the God of all grace; and is able to make all grace to abound towards them; that they having all fufficiency of it, may abound in every good work *; whether performed in a more public, or in a more private way: and he has promifed to give more grace to the humble dependents on him, and worshippers of him. Chrift the mediator is full of Grace; all fulness of it is laid up in him, to be distributed to his people, whenever they want it; and as they have already received from thence, and grace for grace; or an abundance of it, they may have more by application to him for it: for he is a fun and fhield; he will give grace; more grace to them that feek unto him: and there are the means of grace, the word and ordinances, which are the golden pipes; through which the golden oil of grace is communicated from Chrift unto his faints; and there is the throne of grace, which they may come boldly to at all times, that they may obtain mercy, and find grace to help them in time of need"; and to have a full fupply of grace at fuch a time; as every time we worship God is, is a bleffing indeed!

с

3. The Lord bleffes his people when he comes unto them, while they are waiting upon him, and worshipping him, with peace: it is faid the Lord will bless his people with peace; as if this was the one and only bleffing he bleffes them with; or, at least, the chief and principal one: and, indeed, it is a very comprehensive bleffing; it includes all profperity, temporal and spiritual; and all kind of peace, outward and inward; efpecially peace of confcience, tranquility and ferenity of mind; that peace of God which he is the author and giver of, that paffeth all understanding of natural and unconverted men, who know not the way of peace; are strangers to, and intermeddle not with the joy those have that believe in Chrift. This peace is from God; whence he is called the God of peace; who is not only at peace with his people through the blood of Christ, but gives peace unto them; and indeed, he only can give it; wherefore it is afked of him: and if ever it is had, it must come from him. This is a frequent prayer of the apostle's for the churches, Grace to you, and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jefus Chrift. It is to no purpose to apply for it, or expect it elfewhere; and if he gives it, none can take it away; nor even difturb it, unless he fuffers it when he giveth quietness, who then can make trouble? In vain, do Satan, or the world, or any other enemy, feek to hinder the one, or make the other. This peace is through Chrift; who is not only the prince of peace, the man, the peace, who is our peace, and has made peace by the blood of his crofs; but gives it to his followers; even fuch peace as the world cannot give, nor take away; and which he continues with them amidst all their tribulations in this world: it flows from him, and from God through him: through his pre

cious blood, which speaks better things than that of Abel; which speaks pardon, and so peace, to guilty fouls; and by removing guilt, fettles and secures peace; and through his righteousness, by which being juftified, fouls come to have peace with God through Chrift; and are in no fearful apprehenfions of prefent or future wrath; and through the propitiatory facrifice of Chrift; in the view of which they joy in God, through him, by whom they have received the atonement of all their fins and tranfgreffions; the confequence of which must be peace and joy.

And this great bleffing, in which the comfort and happiness of the spiritual life so much confifts, is enjoyed in a way of believing: the more faith, the more confcience-peace, and spiritual joy: it is affured as being what God has promised, Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee; because be trufteth in thee; and it is a prayer of faith; and when so made, it may be expected it will be answered, the God of hope fill you with all joy, and peace in believing; and it is the experience of the faints, that the more faith is in exercife, in religious duties, in prayer, in hearing of the word, or in attendance on any ordinance; the more spiritual peace is enjoyed: And which bleffing the believer is often favoured with, in public worship; in performing the duties of the house of God; and in obferving his commands and ordinances for though there is no reward for keeping them, yet in keeping of them there is great reward"; and this reward is peace of mind; and a fufficient one it is; and which all the Lord's people are bleffed with, more or lefs, that keep close to him in his own ways, and pay a proper and constant regard to his inftitutions and appointments. Great peace have they which love thy law, or doctrine; the doctrine of faith; the doctrine of the gofpel; and fhew their love by a close and conftant attention to it, and to the ordinances of it; nothing fhall offend them"; disturb their peace, and interrupt their joy; they fhall walk comfortably in the light of God's countenance; go on their way rejoicing in Chrift; feeling in their breafts a joy unfpeakable, and full of glory; and fo by good experience, they find the truth of this, that wisdom's paths are paths of peace°.

4. Another bleffing God bleffes his people with, who meet and worship him in places where his name is recorded, is the free and full forgiveness of their fins: This is only of God: none can forgive fin but him, against whom it is committed; whose law is tranfgreffed, and whofe juftice is affronted: Were there any that could, they would be fuch as were like him, at least in this refpect; whereas there are none. Who is a God like unto thee, who pardoneth iniquity, and paffeth by the tranfgreffion of the remnant of his heritage! There is none like him for it; and this he does of his rich grace and mercy; and for the

* Ifai. xxvi 3. • Prov. iii. 17.

Rom. xv. 13.

P Mich. vii. 18.

m Pfalm xix. 11.

n Pfalm cxix. 165.

fake

fake of Christ, his blood, facrifice, and fatisfaction: Hence the apostle exhorts the faints to forgive one another, even as God, for Chrift's fake, faith he, balb forgiven you and though this is done at once, and for all fins together; yet as every fresh commiffion of fin occafions fresh guilt to rife in the confcience, there is need of a renewed application of pardoning grace and mercy; which believers are sometimes favoured with, through the public miniftration of the word; where the name of the Lord is recorded, and the bleffings of his grace are published; and this among the reft. Thus when the prophet Isaiah was caft down under a sense of the pollution and guilt of fin; when in a vifionary way he was in the temple of the Lord; one of the feraphim, an emblem of gofpel ministers, took a live coal from the altar, expreffive of the expiating blood, and atoning facrifice of Chrift, and touched his lips with it, faying, thine iniquity is taken away, and thy fin is purged'; fignifying in a declarative way, according to the tenor of the everlafting gospel, and the doctrine of pardon in it, that his iniquity, of which he was truly fenfible, was forgiven for the fake of the atoning facrifice of the Lamb of God; and in this way, and at such seasons, namely, under the ministry of the word, is the pardon of fin fometimes applied and fealed to the confciences of God's people; and a fpecial bleffing this is: bleed is be whofe tranfgrefion is forgiven, whofe fin is covered: This is a chief and principal blessing in the covenant of grace; it stands firft in the article of redemption; yea, redemption by the blood of Chrift, is made chiefly to confift of it; that is explained by it; in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of fins, according to the riches of his grace: the doctrine of it, is a main and principal one, in the miniftration of the gofpel; one of the first ordered to be preached and published in it; and is of the utmost importance; and it is among the first-rate bleffings we are to call upon our fouls to be thankful and bless God for. On this much of the peace, the comfort of the people of God depend when he would have them comforted, it is by telling them that their iniquity is pardoned; and when he would have them be of good chear, it is by affuring them their fins are forgiven; without which they cannot but this will make the bones that are broken to rejoice; and will cure every foul-fickness and malady for when this grace is applied, the inhabitant shall not fay, I am fick; the reason is, the people that dwell therein, shall be forgiven their iniquity"; though storms and tempefts may arise in the confcience of a finner, through guilt fastened on it, yet let but a word of pardon by Christ by fpoken, all is hush and quiet; there is immediately a calm and without this blessing, and a fense of it, a man cannot ftand before God, and ferve him in his fanctuary with pleasure; but let his confcience be sprinkled and purged by the blood of Chrift,